Seven days, or a fee
Withdrawing through the Arbitrum bridge means waiting at least seven days before the funds arrive on Ethereum (Arbitrum documentation). That delay is not a queue or a congestion problem — it is the dispute window that lets the rollup be challenged. Third-party bridges pay you now and wait it out themselves, and the quotes above are the price of that.
Why the spread is wider here than in the other direction
Every provider on this route has capital tied up on both sides, and how much it has where changes through the day. A provider with plenty of ETH on Ethereum quotes tightly; the same provider quotes worse a few hours later. Comparing several at once is the only way to see it, which is what the table does at the moment you load it.
The free route has a second cost
Using the official bridge avoids provider fees entirely, but claiming the withdrawal is a transaction on Ethereum with its own gas, paid after the wait. For small amounts that claim can matter more than the fee you avoided. The gas column here gives a sense of what an Ethereum transaction costs right now.
The exchange path
If the funds could go to an exchange instead, a deposit from Arbitrum and a withdrawal on Ethereum is a third option with its own fee, shown above wherever we have a current figure for it.
Questions
How long does an Arbitrum withdrawal take?
Through the official bridge, at least seven days before the funds can be claimed on Ethereum. The providers above pay out of their own liquidity instead; each publishes its own estimate in the Time column.
Why does bridging out of Arbitrum cost more than bridging in?
A provider that hands you funds on Ethereum immediately is carrying the seven-day withdrawal itself. That capital has a price, and it is the main thing separating the quotes above.
Is the Arbitrum bridge chain specific?
The official one connects Arbitrum and Ethereum only. Routes to any other network go through a third-party provider, and prices differ per destination — compare each one on its own page.
How much does it cost to move crypto between networks?
The fee column covers everything lost between what you send and what you receive. Gas on Arbitrum is shown separately, since it is paid in ETH on top of the amount being moved.
Sources
- Arbitrum documentation — bridge quickstart · checked 2026-09-12